The novel is very important for the development of the modern Italian language as it's spoken by the masses, as Manzoni felt the necessity of the unification of the land (Italy as a country would not exist until 1861) and deemed necessary to help establish a simple, elegant, clear form of the Italian language which had no ties to Italy’s numerous regional languages and dialects, but could be read and spoken everywhere in the peninsula. What is undoubted is the great eye of the author to social, political and cultural milieu of the XVII century, which in turn winks an eye to the situation of pre-unification Italy.

The novel is known for its extreme historical accuracy (which stemmed from an almost obsessive research by the author in first-hand documents of the era), its cast of memorable characters and diverse interpretations and possibilities of meaning (Christian allegory, social commentary etc). It has been called the most famous and widely read novel of the Italian language.įirst published in 1827, the definitive edition dates 1842, the novel is set in northern Italy during the years 1628 - 1630 and narrates the adventures of a peasant couple (Renzo and Lucia) which tries to get married against the wish of a local nobleman.

The Betrothed (in Italian I promessi sposi) is an Italian historical novel by Alessandro Manzoni (1785 - 1873).

The betrothed manzoni review